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Dart Den

Serving the Dart Frog Community Since 2004...

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Tinctorius Courting Obeservation
#1
I've spent most of my day watching my cobalts courting. Pretty cool to see, since they usually are at this while I'm at work. The 2 males are doing a dance, and the female is following them around, I can only presume she's making her decision. Very interesting to observe though. I'll post some pics in a bit, but they will be through the glass pics and somewhat blurry, since i do not want to disturb them.
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#2
pictures? =)
Azureus - Imitators "Cainarachi Valley" - Leucomelas - Black Jeans
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#3
Well the pics came out so bad because of condensation they were useless. But after they did the deed and chilled, I did clean the glass up. This was only 6 days after the last clutch she laid, so I'm hoping for some pic opportunities this weekend. I pulled the clutch from the week before and I have wriggling tads in a lid that I'm trying to figure out how to deal with when they break out. They laid this last clutch on the leaf litter again, but the eggs look real healthy, so I will wait and see if they are ready to transfer them with these newest 4. The clutch that has tads was 6. fingers crossed!!
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#4
I hope all you east coast folks are doing ok after the storm Sad

I have a few questions, if anyone could help. I have 6 tads that are looking pretty good. They were laid 2 weeks ago this saturday, are wiggling around a lot, and have almost absorbed most of the yolk. Any thoughts when I can expect them to emerge? These have been separated from the parents, and I don't know what to expect. Once they do, I will need to transfer them to my tad cups, and I'm not sure how to deal with this problem without injuring them either. I have everything prepped and ready, but still have no idea what to do about these 2 issues. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. My frogs are Surinam Cobalts, if the frog species makes a difference on egg/tad development. Thanks.
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#5
make sure you have water up to the sides of the eggs but not Over Top of them - they can drown. Use grocery store 'spring water' or even tap but do NOT use R.O or Distilled water as it will harm them.

Let them emerge on their own. Hard to say how long it always takes as it depends on many factors, chiefly temperature.

You can use a slurpee straw to carefully scoop them up, but when they are all free of the egg and wigglin' , you can flood them and just pour them into one small half size deli cup and then from there, pour them one by one into individual cups.

The key is patience. No need to hurry this process, as it's actually better to move them 'late' than 'early' IMO. With good humidity and water just barely touching the sides of the egg, they will be fine.
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"Time flies like an arrow, fruit flies like a banana".
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#6
Mineral water, check. I have the lid sitting on some sphagnum that is wet, and the deli cup they are in is on the viv top to regulate the temp. The humidity in the cup is giving me enough condensation for 'rain' which is filling the lid, so i have been dumping off excess so they are not flooded every couple days.

So I should be ok with this method if they emerge while I'm at work? I will just let them be and see how it goes then. First successful clutch so my head is swimming!!

Thanks Phil Smile
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#7
you also want steady temps - not too hot. @ 75F is ideal IMO. Try not to let them get too hot like 80F or they will emerge early and sometimes not be as strong.
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#8
I was thinking they were going a little slowly compared to the featured pic of those azuerus eggs, so no worries there. The temps should be pretty steady, i keep the house 71, the viv gets to 78 this time of year, about 81 in the summer, and like i said i am using the viv top to regulate the temp of the standing water in the deli cup that i have them in. They look great, i can see the gills, and they move a lot. I dont have a little thermometer to put in it though, so now that i have this experience, i will rethink my incubation situation. Perhaps a plastic tote set up is in my near future, because i do believe the parents are at it again today.
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#9
I have one other quick question. The female seems to be alternating partners week to week. The one she partnered with for the clutch that has tads, was cut off for the other male last week. Since the switch, that male is starting to try to call. He puffs up and looks like he is calling but there is no noise. Is this something they have to learn, or is it not a call that we can hear?
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#10
Probably very quiet. The partnering is good - that's the main reason for the 2.1 tinc sex ratio. The females sometimes hound the male who in turn gets pretty exhausted from constant breeding activity. A second male sometimes works nicely.

Just seperate anyone who appears to be getting thin.
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"Time flies like an arrow, fruit flies like a banana".
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#11
My next frog purchase, which will be soon will be for a 'vocal' species. I was hoping to hear calling, and it seems i will not get that with these guys, but they are fun to observe and they just don't seem to care if i am in the viv or not. I got them as babies, and they were boring for about a year, but that has all changed in about 1.5 months now. Both the males are fat and happy, i have gotten concerned after the female lays because she looks thin, but then she fattens up in a day or two, so i stopped worrying about that. I will watch for thinning in the males though. thanks again
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#12
[Image: IMAG0286.jpg]
Tads today

[Image: IMAG0255.jpg]
New viv 24 hours after completion

[Image: IMAG0287.jpg]
2 weeks after //28g eclipse bowfront
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#13
yep..won't be long now. Few more days.
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"Time flies like an arrow, fruit flies like a banana".
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#14
Crappy pics, but i will post them just cuz i said i would!

[Image: IMAG0270.jpg]

[Image: IMAG0266.jpg]

[Image: IMAG0265.jpg]

[Image: IMAG0268.jpg]
This one i opened the top for and they didn't care
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#15
I have 4 more on the leaf you see them on here from last thursday, they were very large eggs, and i can see the same discoloration in the yolk on those so i think these 4 will also be fertile, but i am going to leave them alone and see if they transfer them.
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#16
cablemandan Wrote:I was thinking they were going a little slowly compared to the featured pic of those azuerus eggs, so no worries there.
Hey Dan - that was my first tad that I was tracking daily - ended up not making it. Anyhow, my azureus have been taking roughly two weeks to hatch (though the most recent clutch hatched out in 10 days before their gills were resorbed). Like Phil said they look really close, I'd watch for the shape. They bodies of mine go from looking like an "8" to a "0" as they are about to hatch. That seems to be the most consistent way to judge an impending hatch event.
cablemandan Wrote:So I should be ok with this method if they emerge while I'm at work? I will just let them be and see how it goes then. First successful clutch so my head is swimming!!
Me too - I was watching that first one like a hawk! I would not be concerned if it hatched out while you were at work. I have been leaving the newly hatched tads in their petri dishes for an extra day or two post hatch - they have just enough water in a tilted petri dish to float around. It's freaky too because they often flip over on their back and look like they are d-e-a-d but they end up darting a short distance and righting themselves.

I'm still new to this so take the following advice with that in mind...

I have been transferring them to a deli cup from a petri dish about 48 hours after hatch. I keep the initial water level really low, usually half a centimeter, then I raise it to a centimeter after they are swimming around consistently when I move the cup. The most water I put in is about an 2 to 3 centimeters when they are a few weeks post-hatch.

I keep my petri dishes in a sterilite shoe box lined with paper towels that I periodically switch. I can comfortably hold 3 petri dishes, 4 if push comes to shove. I offset the petri dish lids which helps contain the moisture but still lets the dish breathe. I seem to have better success with this method and lose less embryos when the dishes are not buttoned up. I treat with Methylene Blue in a spray bottle periodically to help with fungus control.

I keep the shoe box lid and it stays in a room that is usually 78. It's getting colder here at night now, so the temps may drop to 72 at night. The box sits in a TV hutch on a shelf - no heat sources nearby (TV removed for froglet viv!), and no direct airflow on the box. The temps stay pretty consistent. I open the container once a day to check on them, so they get fresh air then as well.

Good luck and keep the pictures coming! Looks like you are doing great and on the verge of being overrun with tads!
Jim from Austin | https://www.oneillscrossing.com/dart-frogs/
fantastica nominant | summersi | reticulata | A barbotini
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#17
cablemandan Wrote:This one i opened the top for and they didn't care
:lol: Same here. I had the viv door wide open with a macro lens and a ring lamp crammed in there and they didn't stop depositing for a minute! I did get a couple of nasty looks from the male every once in a while :oops:
Jim from Austin | https://www.oneillscrossing.com/dart-frogs/
fantastica nominant | summersi | reticulata | A barbotini
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#18
thanks for the heads up joneill! my experience is pretty limited too.. i've been minding these frogs for almost 2 years, but i got them when they were thumbnail size. so i still have tons of questions, but i kinda bump and grind my way through. this breeding thing has just started in the last 5-6 weeks. i guess my frogs hit maturity lol. i thought i just had frogs that would bounce about and look cool, turns out they have other ideas for me haha.

Yeah they look at me like i am walking past the bathroom mirror in the morning from time to time! (WHAT ARE YOU LOOKING AT!)
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#19
So, those did hatch, and I had a bad egg, but got 5 tads swimming up and down the water column. They look good and are doubling in size almost by the day. If I was smart I would have taken pictures today, but I got busy feeding, observing (both species) and making cultures. I go out of town on biz soon, so maybe I will get some tad pics up by Saturday next.

I have some new Aurotaenia's and am now torn between viv's to watch. Some people think they have problems! haha

1 guess for which one ended up bad in that bunch! (for the more experienced folks)
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#20
[Image: IMAG0334.jpg]

They grow so fast!!


[Image: IMAG0329.jpg]\

I thought I lost one, but during a water change I saw them all again. seems that they hide in the leaf litter at this stage too.. and only 2 or 3 are present most times. I have seen 4 late night, but that is why i thought i lost one.. lol
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